Macrovision Solutions is officially changing its name today to Rovi Corporation and unveiled its new brand positioning and visual identity to highlight the company’s evolution as a digital entertainment technology leader.

“Over the past two years, we have been focused on an ambitious strategy to change the digital entertainment experience. As a result, we have made dramatic changes to our solutions portfolio. With our leading guide solutions and extensive entertainment metadata, we believe we are now positioned as a key enabler for digital entertainment,” said Fred Amoroso, president and CEO of Rovi Corporation.

Today’s news also coincides with the company’s launch of a new media guide, code named “Liquid.” This new guide is capable of connecting consumers to entertainment content on the Internet and digital content stored at home, as well as broadcast and cable TV in a single, easy-to-use interface designed to simplify the entertainment experience.

US research carried out by Lieberman underlines the importance of a guide. For 74% of viewers, the television guide is the first screen they choose to see when they turn on their television. Some 89% return to their television guide every 30 to 60 minutes, and 80% describe the television guide as a necessity for TV viewing.

The Liquid guide solution is comprised of three distinct, but integrated solutions: a Television Content Guide, a Broadband Content Guide and a Personal Content Guide.

The Television Content Guide is a linear broadcast television discovery solution that CE manufacturers can embed into their devices. The Broadband Content Guide connects users to their favorite full-length television and movie content for both free and paid services, as well as additional content including Internet video, popular music, social networking and other Internet destinations. The Personal Content Guide not only helps consumers navigate their media collections, but it also gives them the ability to share their content from the ease and comfort of their television screens.

The solution is also capable of personalising the entertainment viewing experience by learning the preferences and tastes of viewers based on their interactions with the guide. The Liquid guide uses this intelligence to store favorites and make metadata-enhanced recommendations for undiscovered content. The guide also stores user profiles, so each member of the household can retrieve a personalized guide each time he or she turns on the TV.

The Liquid guide is designed to be able to connect to social network applications, such as Flixster – one of the largest social networks for movie lovers on the web – to access and provide recommendations directly through the guide. The latest Liquid partner is Slacker, the Free, personalised online radio service

The Liquid guide is planned to be available for CE manufacturers in early 2010 as an entire package or individual modules. “Because consumer electronics makers may want to develop their own imbedded media guide solution, we need to make Liquid very flexible for them to incorporate our solution in their products, in term of components,” Corey Ferengul, Rovi’s Executive Vice President, Product Management and Marketing, tells DVD Intelligence.

When it comes to offering an all-inclusives media guide to Europeans the enterprise is challenging. “There are video and broadcast right and privacy issues that differ from country to country,” says Ferengul. “We are looking at the big countries, the UK and Germany first, then France.” The model for monetising the media guide is also based on advertising revenue. “We are working with branding partners. Sharing ad income depend on each country practice,”


TV Content Guide


Broadband Content Guide


Personal Content Guide

Story filed 16.07.09